In woodworking, there are often times when protrusions interrupt a flat surface of wood. For example, people often times use nails, dowels or other similar devices to connect two different pieces of wood. When so doing, a portion of the dowel may undesirably extend beyond the surface of the article that it is connecting. In order to create a smooth surface, it is desirable to saw off the extending portion of the dowel.
Saws are well known in the art. Traditional saws, such as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,423,843 make it difficult to make flush cuts. One reason this is difficult is that the handle is oriented such that an operator's knuckles would hit the surface of the article, preventing an accurate cut. Further, the blade of a traditional saw is not oriented such that a flat flush cut can be made with precision and accuracy.
Saws that have been designed to make flush cuts suffer other deficiencies. Typically, these saws have blades on their exterior. During any sawing operation, there is a tendency of an operator to angle the blade while cutting. When using a typical flush cut saw, a typical right-handed operator gripping the saw with his right hand may unintentionally allow his fingers to rotate upward (and vice versa for a left-handed operator). This rotation causes the exterior saw blade to be angled slightly downward toward the surface of the wood. This results in the operator unintentionally cutting into the flat surface. These unwanted scratches are a problem in the woodworking industry because they are very difficult to remove. In high quality goods, a scratch can wreck the value of the entire article being constructed. This problem is especially acute in commercial production where repeated, monotonous sawing can cause an operator to make many of these scratches throughout the day.
In addition, exterior blades can be quite dangerous. While sawing, the tendency is for a right-handed operator to place his left hand on the surface to stabilize it and achieve leverage, and then saw inwardly, toward the left hand with his right hand (and vice versa for a left-handed operator). With an exterior blade, this is dangerous because, on completing the cut through the dowel, the sharp blade of the saw is being pushed toward the exposed left hand. This is especially a problem in environments where there can be careless sawing due to repetitiveness (such as in factories) or where safety is imperative. For example, schools often times have wood shop classes that require flush cuts to be made. The prior art flush cut saws can be extremely dangerous for distracted or inexperienced sawers taking this class, and injuries caused by prior art saws can be a source of major liability for the school system.
It is therefore desirable to have a flexible saw capable of making a flush cut to consistently achieve a tight, flush cut without a significant possibility of scratching the wood. It is also desirable to have a flexible saw that is safe for use by inexperienced or careless sawers.